A Mom's Guide To April Fools' Day

Q: I live with three little tricksters who always seem to catch me by surprise. Friday is April Fools' Day and I would like to stay one step ahead of them this year. Any great ideas????

A: Thanks for the fun question. I have a pretty tricky house of my own (I'm still cleaning green stuff up from areas that the sneaky Leprechauns took over a few weeks ago). Following are a few ideas to bring fun, with a relatively small mess, into your home for April Fools' Day.

• Make non-sip-able drinks. The night prior fill a clear glass three-quarters of the way full with Jello.  Make sure that you match the Jello color to their favorite drink. When it is starting to set, place a drinking straw in it.  The next day, serve them to your tricksters (even dad) and enjoy watching them try to "drink."
• Ahead of time, paint a bar of soap with clear nail polish and let it dry.  The next person that goes to wash will not be able to lather up!
• Also in the shower, place a color tablet from an Easter egg coloring kit in the shower head (just twist it off and then twist it back on).  The next person who showers will get a colorful surprise.
• For a "minty" snack, take the white filling out of Oreo cookies and replace it with toothpaste.
• Switch your snack bag contents with each other, refill with the incorrect content including a note that says "April Fools'" and then reseal the bag with double sided tape.
• Place a Post-It note on the bottom of the computer mouse (making sure that the sticky part is not on the roller ball).  The mouse will not work when it is attached and will cause the user confusion and frustration until they figure it out.
• Since the kids in the area have the day off of school, wake them up in a panic saying that they need to hurry up as they are going to be late for school, then shout "April Fools'!!!"

Good luck and be careful where you sit, as you never know where a Whoopie Cushion will be hiding!